I'll snap you!

Teenagers love it, adults don't understand it. Snapchat is the digital hype of the youthful hour. Why is that?

For teenagers, the app with the cute ghost on a yellow background seems indispensable. The special thing about it is that the images sent can only be viewed for a very short time before they disappear again. According to the 2016 JAMES study on the media usage behaviour of young people, Snapchat has now overtaken Facebook among younger people. The application is one of the three most used social media apps among respondents aged between 12 and 19, along with Instagram and WhatsApp. 80 per cent have a Snapchat account.

With Snapchat, young people have found a digital place where they can express themselves because this platform still seems largely free from parents and other adults . Many teenagers use the app to take snapshots. They take photos and add filters - for the face or surroundings, for example. This allows them to give themselves, their boyfriend or girlfriend a wreath of flowers or a moustache. Add stickers, paintings, texts, time, date, temperature and location. And particularly exciting for young people: if two people are sitting next to each other, they can swap faces using the Swap Face function.

The pictures or short video sequences are then sent directly to friends or added to the so-called «story». Users can use this to collect content over the course of the day and tell a story that their friends can watch.

Snap and go?

Many teenagers are a little braver on Snapchat than on Instagram, for example, because they know that the videos disappear again: The videos disappear again - the images or video snippets remain online for 24 hours. And the recipient can view the snaps for a maximum of ten seconds. Communication with the snaps is fast, intense, colourful, violent and somehow shrill. A reflection of the everyday life of teenagers: You have to be constantly present, vie for attention, can't miss anything.

How safe is the app? Experienced snappers are well aware that the recipient can take a screenshot of a snap. They are also familiar with the apps that save Snapchat images, such as SnapSave.
Nevertheless, it is still important for you as parents to discuss such security gaps with your children. By familiarising yourself with your children's apps and pointing them to Snapchat, for example: Snapchat can't keep its promise to make images unviewable after ten seconds at the latest. Technology or not, every restriction can be circumvented. That's why we need a critical attitude that gradually turns us parents and our children into media-savvy users.

On Medienstark you will find tips and interactive learning modules for the competent use of digital media in everyday family life. swisscom.ch/medienstark